BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Low Carb At last I see my knees again!

Hi, I'm from scotland and I have been on a low carb diet for 3 months and have gone from 217lbs to 188lbs. I see my knees again, I play better tennis and I can tuck my shirts into my belt (last hole being used) without the tell tale bulge. Low Carb works and I enjoy it. Thanks for all your good advice on the site it helped. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Hey there, that's so wonderful! Isn't it fun getting that direct feedback from your belt loops? My boyfriend has already tossed out an entire set of belts because they no longer fit, and on his 'smaller belts' he's down to the smallest rung already. He started out at around 300 pounds and is down around 220 now.

You're quite right about becoming more energetic for sports - it's very much a self fulfilling cycle. When you're overweight you don't feel like physical activity because of all the extra weight you have to lug around. So you don't do the sports and therefore you get even more hefty. But as you lose weight, you feel more energetic - so you start doing more things - meaning you lose even more weight, meaning you get even better at your sports. So it actively reinforces itself and you become more and more active as you go.

It is SO amazing, once you've lost that weight, to think that you used to carry it all around with you every single day. At this point my boyfriend's lost 80 pounds. So every day that he walked around, he was carrying in essence a 12 year old child on his back, lugging the child everywhere he went. That's a huge load on your muscles, your blood system, your organs, everything!

What are your favorite foods now that you're eating low carb?

Well, I used to be a real pasta, potato and pizza fan :devil: but now I enjoy Red Thai chiicken (no rice of course), a good steak (Scottish Beef is some of the best in the world) and venison done in a red wine and shallot sauce with wild garlic.... I am now making myself hungry.

My favourite dessert is freshly picked raspberries with double cream and mint. I also used to drink Guiness(a stout beer)not the best for low carbers. I now partake in Gin & slimline tonic or good red wine(sometimes too much I has to be said :music: ).

Just bought a new pair of Levi 501s 34" waist, so as you Americans would say Yeeehaaaaa!!!! <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

That's so great! And red wine is REALLY healthy for you so that's a good switch for you in many ways <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Do you really have venison in your stores? I don't think I've ever seen it here, we would have to special order it ...

In Scotland we have a large deer population therefore you would think venison would be in good supply, but no. It's limited to specalist butchers and some markets. It is getting more and more popular though <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> .

We also eat "haggis" which you may have heard about? As a low carber I can't eat it anymore...sigh <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> . Mabye one day someone will do a low carb version which is sure to be bad!

I'm sure you didn't eat haggis daily, and really once you reach your ideal weight it's fine to splurge occasionally. Sometimes I go for say a fruit dish for dessert which has more calories, and it's easily enough burned off in a day or two. The trick is to stay with healthy treats even when they do have more sugar, vs drinking empty calories in a soda or such <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

You're right. But it's funny I don't seem to need "treats" like I use to. When I smoked(given up 10 years ago)I used to rush the food to light up a fag (cigarette), then when I gave up smoking I used to rush the food for a sweet dessert and now I just enjoy the food.

Low carb is an attitude not a diet .

I go to France in couple of weeks and I may succumb to the French Bread for a week or so but I promise to cycle 10 miles every day okay? :devil:

That sounds like a great trade, plus you'll get lots of healthy wine into you I'm sure <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Is low carb popular in France do you know?

I am assuming not as the french hate any type of restrictive eating, gastronomes one and all :rolling: .

Actually many low carb diet books I read point explicitly to French eating as a good model. The French don't eat processed food, they don't gorge on ice cream. When they eat, it is a long, slow drawn out process, eating various courses of fresh, healthy food. They drink red wine with their meals. Yes, they have bread - but usually it is handmade, freshly baked bread full of grain. So if anything it is "fiber-rich" healthy bread.

The French invented dishes like ratatoille, which is a low carb classic!!